�й�365bet���Ĺ���

WASHINGTON, June 13, 2012 �� The latest episode in the American Chemical �й�365bet���Ĺ���’s (ACS��) award-winning podcast series describes the world’s first “electrified snail,�� which now joins the menagerie of cockroaches, rats, rabbits and other animals previously implanted with biofuel cells that generate electricity �� perhaps for future spy cameras, eavesdropping microphones and other electronics �� from natural sugar in their bodies.

Based on a report by Evgeny Katz, Ph.D., and colleagues in the Journal of the American Chemical �й�365bet���Ĺ���, the new podcast is available without charge at and from .

In the report, Katz and colleagues point out that many previous studies have involved “potentially implantable�� biofuel cells. So far, however, none has produced an implanted biofuel cell in a small, live animal that could generate electricity for an extended period of time without harming the animal. “The snail with the implanted biofuel cell will be able to operate in a natural environment, producing sustainable electrical micropower for activating various bioelectronic devices,�� say the scientists.

To turn a living snail into a power source, the researchers made two small holes in its shell and inserted high-tech electrodes made from compressed carbon nanotubes. They coated the highly conductive material with enzymes, which foster chemical reactions in animals�� bodies. Using a different enzyme on each electrode, one pulling electrons from glucose and another using those electrons to turn oxygen molecules into water, they induced an electric current. Importantly, the long-lasting enzymes could generate electricity again and again after the scientists fed and rested what they termed the “electrified�� snail, which lived freely for several months with the implanted fuel cell.

Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions is a series of podcasts describing some of the 21st century’s most daunting problems, and how cutting-edge research in chemistry matters in the quest for solutions. Global Challenges is the centerpiece in an between ACS and the Royal �й�365bet���Ĺ��� of Chemistry. Global Challenges is a sweeping panorama of global challenges that includes dilemmas such as providing a hungry, thirsty world with ample supplies of safe food and clean water; developing alternatives to petroleum to fuel society; preserving the environment and assuring a sustainable future for our children and improving human health.

For more entertaining, informative science videos and podcasts from the ACS Office of Public Affairs, view , , and .

To automatically receive news releases from the American Chemical �й�365bet���Ĺ��� contact newsroom@acs.org.

###